Walking With Dinosaurs 2025

[Trenchcoated Rebbachisaur]

Here's hoping "Surviving Earth" can pick up the slack.

[HD-man]

"The May/June 2025 Issue of the Nine PBS Magazine showcases THIS image showing the details of the #WWD2025 Albertosaurus up close.
Under the appropriate lighting, even at low resolution, it's still easier to appreciate the work that went into the sculpting of the model...": https://x.com/raftingzalmoxes/status/1913651905206894821
Source: https://issuu.com/nine_magazine/docs/nine_pbs_magazine_-_may_june_2025_issue

[Protopatch]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/2024/walking-with-dinosaurs-returns/

Confirmed animals so far are Lusotitan, Spinosaurus, and Tyrannosaurus/Triceratops. Scott Hartman, Nizar Ibrahim, Thomas Holtz, and Natalia Jagielska confirmed to consult, with probably more names on the way. According to Holtz, only a few species from the original 1999 series will be returning, the series will follow a format similar to that of "The Ballad of Big Al" with 6 episodes rather than the original WWD, and Torvosaurus will likely appear in the episode on Lusotitan.

I had the confirmation a few days ago by Nizar Ibrahim himself that one of the episods will be dedicated to his fieldwork in Africa.
PS : for my French fellows, WWD2 is going to air this year on France Televisions.

[Sim]

Paleofiguras on Facebook has posted summaries of the six episodes.  I'm disappointed.  There are three episodes with tyrannosaurids and at least two of them also have a ceratopsid.  Was it really necessary to have both Albertosaurus and Gorgosaurus?  It doesn't feel like this series wants to let people experience the Mesozoic, rather it feels like pleasing someone who can't get enough of tyrannosaurids and ceratopsids.  What happened to the more interesting, diverse and balanced entity that is the original WWD?  Also, five of the episodes of WWD2 are of the Cretaceous.

[Jorgesaurus]

I would have preferred them to focus on an episode from the Upper Jurassic, specifically the Morrison Formation, where Stegosaurus, Apatosaurus, Diplodocus, Camarasaurus, Allosaurus, Ceratosaurus and Brachiosaurus would appear.

[Trenchcoated Rebbachisaur]

Having both Gorgosaurus AND Albertosaurus as starring roles is... Certainly a choice. You could have so easily replaced that Albertosaurus one with another Theropod from another formation. Unless they're doing this because we have a particularly interesting Albertosaurus specimen I really do not understand the rationale here.
This keeping in mind that the most recent other WWD property (the movie) already featured Pachyrhinosaurus and Gorgosaurus and the whole situation just feels a bit ridiculous - the company behind animating the movie went under, so, chances are the models are lost and this isn't even a case of recycling them.
At this rate I'd almost rather they just made episodes about the settings of the first season to update the science, instead of this nonsense, which feels like it was entirely geared towards showcasing the favorite Theropod genera of a guy with really basic taste in Theropods.

[HD-man]

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3pCbP4cInL8_aQ4im5cYVw/community?lb=UgkxbsFFC2Q_l6tkEcCgdnPT-RagDnrihl9i

All right, we now have the episode titles and their order for the re-imagined Walking With Dinosaurs. And I f* called it: the episodes will NOT be presented chronologically.

So that pretty much settles once and for all that this version of WWD will not be about the history and evolution of dinosaurs like the first one, but completely isolated stories with no overarching narrative between them. I think this is a nice change of pace overall, as much as I would've enjoyed a seeing the oversaturated animals of Hell Creek get incinerated by an indifferent space nuke. But no, Hell Creek is where this series kicks off:

[spoiler? synopsis from the PBS website]

Spoiler

Episode 1: "The Orphan"
Sixty-six million years ago, an orphaned baby Triceratops roamed the lush world of Laramidia, alone and vulnerable. Stalked by the fearsome Tyrannosaurus Rex, the youngster relied on her wits and diminutive size to survive. Today, paleontologists in Montana are uncovering her fossils, allowing us to imagine her life and the dangers she faced. Stunning VFX [lawl] recreate her encounters, from escaping a giant Pterosaur to a heart-stopping face-off with T. rex, bringing her story vividly to life.


Episode 2: "The River Dragon"
North Africa, 100 million years ago, a Spinosaurus father must embark on a dangerous voyage to feed his babies. To reach his destination he must lead his young family across one of the deadliest environments in Earth's history: a land crawling with ferocious predators. At the end of their journey, an extraordinary feast awaits – if he can run the gauntlet without his babies becoming someone else's meal.


Episode 3: "Band Of Brothers"
Utah, 130 million years ago, a band of armored dinosaurs battle to reach adulthood, pursued by a group of Utahraptors: one of the most formidable predators that's ever lived. It's a deadly game of cat and mouse that pits heavy armor against vicious claws and lethal cunning. A life-and-death struggle that builds to a final showdown amongst the flames of a burning forest.


Episode 4: "The Pack"
Seventy-one million years ago lived a teenage Albertosaurus, a faster, nimbler relative of T. rex. She must earn her place in a deadly, ferocious pack or risk starvation. Today, paleontologists in Western Canada are unearthing her remains, allowing us to imagine her story. Based on real-world evidence, stunning VFX recreate her encounters, from hunting pterosaurs, to fighting the dominant matriarch and battling for survival in the brutal late Cretaceous world.


Episode 5: "Enemies Assemble"
Evidence from a dramatic discovery in Canada reveals the epic story of one of the largest dinosaur herds that ever lived, the Pachyrhinosaurus and one of its youngest members. To find enough food to survive, this close relative of Triceratops must embark on a grueling 400-mile migration across hostile wilderness. On their trail is the vicious, pack-hunting Gorgosaurus. But the greatest threat of all awaits at the end of their journey... a cataclysmic storm that threatens the herd's very survival.


Episode 6: "Island of Giants"
Island of Giants tells the tale of one of the largest dinosaurs ever to walk the earth, a colossal long-necked Lusotitan. Living 150 million years ago on an island known as the Iberian Mesta, now Portugal, this 25-meter-long titan dwarfs every other dinosaur in the region. Yet his intimidating size is only part of the story. His ultimate goal is to win over a female and secure his legacy. It's a quest that will see him embark on an epic journey as he risks his life for love.

[close]

[Faelrin]

So this is really feeling more like WWD in name only, maybe except doing Ballad of Big Al style episodes (but even that remains to be seen). A different narrator, different composer, no chronological episodes, nothing to do with Tim Haines (who is working another new series anyways).

I might check out the Utahraptor, Spinosaurus, and Lusotitan episodes since its different fauna from both Prehistoric Planet and even Life on our Planet (as poorly done as it was). Rest I'll probably skip. Need a break from Tyrannosaurus and Pachyrhinosaurus in documentaries for once.

[Gwangi]

I'll watch them all but this is a disappointing lineup. The Pachyrhinosaurus episode seems especially redundant considering the WWD movie. Never mind that Pachyrhinosaurus was heavily featured in Prehistoric Planet and March of the Dinosaurs. Pachyrhinosaurus is one of my favorite ceratopsians but my goodness, lets change things up a bit!

[GojiraGuy1954]

I've given up any hope that this thing is gonna feel anything like the documentary it's trying to ape. The episode list is out and they couldn't even be bothered to put them in chronological order. Hopefully it'll still be alright as its own thing, but regardless it's been profoundly disappointing the more I hear about this 'revival.'

[Jit]

It's understandable that people want a chronological storytelling but I don't personally think it's that big of a deal. Let's not pretend that Prehistoric Planet is perfect in this sense either, and even the original WWD has its issues with storytelling as a whole where it can jump around and be very convoluted, even at times anachronistic with fauna appearances. I grew up watching WWD, and to say that the original CG is better than the current WWD is nothing short of nostalgia. What has held up in WWD is the puppetry. But otherwise it falls short, it reuses the Allosaurus Fragilis model alone for two separate dinosaur species. I'm not knocking it, as I know the budget was not astronomical. But the same thing applies here, this show does not have Apples budget.

Anyone going into this with a negative mindset is going to get what they put in, disappointment. Me personally, I'm glad to see dinosaur/prehistoric media that actually cares about the science and isn't Jurassic World.

[Trenchcoated Rebbachisaur]

I feel like anyone not going in with a negative mindset is probably gonna receive disappointment too, tbf

[GojiraGuy1954]

It's understandable that people want a chronological storytelling but I don't personally think it's that big of a deal. Let's not pretend that Prehistoric Planet is perfect in this sense either, and even the original WWD has its issues with storytelling as a whole where it can jump around and be very convoluted, even at times anachronistic with fauna appearances. I grew up watching WWD, and to say that the original CG is better than the current WWD is nothing short of nostalgia. What has held up in WWD is the puppetry. But otherwise it falls short, it reuses the Allosaurus Fragilis model alone for two separate dinosaur species. I'm not knocking it, as I know the budget was not astronomical. But the same thing applies here, this show does not have Apples budget.

Anyone going into this with a negative mindset is going to get what they put in, disappointment. Me personally, I'm glad to see dinosaur/prehistoric media that actually cares about the science and isn't Jurassic World.

Prehistoric Planet never said it was going to be Walking With Dinosaurs

[Jit]

It's understandable that people want a chronological storytelling but I don't personally think it's that big of a deal. Let's not pretend that Prehistoric Planet is perfect in this sense either, and even the original WWD has its issues with storytelling as a whole where it can jump around and be very convoluted, even at times anachronistic with fauna appearances. I grew up watching WWD, and to say that the original CG is better than the current WWD is nothing short of nostalgia. What has held up in WWD is the puppetry. But otherwise it falls short, it reuses the Allosaurus Fragilis model alone for two separate dinosaur species. I'm not knocking it, as I know the budget was not astronomical. But the same thing applies here, this show does not have Apples budget.

Anyone going into this with a negative mindset is going to get what they put in, disappointment. Me personally, I'm glad to see dinosaur/prehistoric media that actually cares about the science and isn't Jurassic World.

Prehistoric Planet never said it was going to be Walking With Dinosaurs

You act like the storytelling in WWD is something so fantastical that it can't ever change. It has dinosaurs, and is a documentary style production. It's made by BBC. It's Walking With Dinosaurs.

I wonder if you were this vocal about the terrible WWD movie that came out.

[DefinitelyNOTDilo]

I agree with what I've seen others say that this becomes much better when you think of it as a Planet Dinosaur sequel instead.

[DinoToyForum]

It's understandable that people want a chronological storytelling but I don't personally think it's that big of a deal. Let's not pretend that Prehistoric Planet is perfect in this sense either, and even the original WWD has its issues with storytelling as a whole where it can jump around and be very convoluted, even at times anachronistic with fauna appearances. I grew up watching WWD, and to say that the original CG is better than the current WWD is nothing short of nostalgia. What has held up in WWD is the puppetry. But otherwise it falls short, it reuses the Allosaurus Fragilis model alone for two separate dinosaur species. I'm not knocking it, as I know the budget was not astronomical. But the same thing applies here, this show does not have Apples budget.

Anyone going into this with a negative mindset is going to get what they put in, disappointment. Me personally, I'm glad to see dinosaur/prehistoric media that actually cares about the science and isn't Jurassic World.

Prehistoric Planet never said it was going to be Walking With Dinosaurs

You act like the storytelling in WWD is something so fantastical that it can't ever change. It has dinosaurs, and is a documentary style production. It's made by BBC. It's Walking With Dinosaurs.

I wonder if you were this vocal about the terrible WWD movie that came out.

Planet Dinosaur fits your definition of Walking with Dinosaurs, but it's not called Walking with Dinosaurs because it's substantially different from Walking with Dinosaurs. If this new series is also substantially different from Walking with Dinosaurs, it's fair to criticise calling it Walking with Dinosaurs.

And here's the Walking with Dinosaurs 3D movie thread, people were pretty vocal aboout that too!  https://dinotoyblog.com/forum/index.php?topic=630

[Flaffy]

The "Walking with" franchise always followed chronological storytelling. Walking with Dinosaurs, Walking with Beasts and Walking with Monsters all followed in the same footstep. It absolutely is a fair criticisim to point out how far WWD2 (and WWD3D) deviates from the established formula.

While I am glad a new dinosaur documentary is coming out, I cannot in right mind consider it part of the "Walking with" franchise. I find it disingenuous to market it as a sequel when it bears such limited resemblance to the original series.

[Trenchcoated Rebbachisaur]

It's understandable that people want a chronological storytelling but I don't personally think it's that big of a deal. Let's not pretend that Prehistoric Planet is perfect in this sense either, and even the original WWD has its issues with storytelling as a whole where it can jump around and be very convoluted, even at times anachronistic with fauna appearances. I grew up watching WWD, and to say that the original CG is better than the current WWD is nothing short of nostalgia. What has held up in WWD is the puppetry. But otherwise it falls short, it reuses the Allosaurus Fragilis model alone for two separate dinosaur species. I'm not knocking it, as I know the budget was not astronomical. But the same thing applies here, this show does not have Apples budget.

Anyone going into this with a negative mindset is going to get what they put in, disappointment. Me personally, I'm glad to see dinosaur/prehistoric media that actually cares about the science and isn't Jurassic World.

Prehistoric Planet never said it was going to be Walking With Dinosaurs

You act like the storytelling in WWD is something so fantastical that it can't ever change. It has dinosaurs, and is a documentary style production. It's made by BBC. It's Walking With Dinosaurs.

I wonder if you were this vocal about the terrible WWD movie that came out.

Planet Dinosaur fits your definition of Walking with Dinosaurs, but it's not called Walking with Dinosaurs because it's substantially different from Walking with Dinosaurs. If this new series is also substantially different from Walking with Dinosaurs, it's fair to criticise calling it Walking with Dinosaurs.

And here's the Walking with Dinosaurs 3D movie thread, people were pretty vocal aboout that too!  https://dinotoyblog.com/forum/index.php?topic=630

That thread is really funny with the benefit of hindsight. Poor, poor innocent people in the past, unaware of the sheer magnitude of disappointment they would soon face.
...Also I now kinda really want a modern "Chased by dinosaurs/Sea monsters" take. Or even better yet, modern Prehistoric Park.

[DinoToyForum]

It's understandable that people want a chronological storytelling but I don't personally think it's that big of a deal. Let's not pretend that Prehistoric Planet is perfect in this sense either, and even the original WWD has its issues with storytelling as a whole where it can jump around and be very convoluted, even at times anachronistic with fauna appearances. I grew up watching WWD, and to say that the original CG is better than the current WWD is nothing short of nostalgia. What has held up in WWD is the puppetry. But otherwise it falls short, it reuses the Allosaurus Fragilis model alone for two separate dinosaur species. I'm not knocking it, as I know the budget was not astronomical. But the same thing applies here, this show does not have Apples budget.

Anyone going into this with a negative mindset is going to get what they put in, disappointment. Me personally, I'm glad to see dinosaur/prehistoric media that actually cares about the science and isn't Jurassic World.

Prehistoric Planet never said it was going to be Walking With Dinosaurs

You act like the storytelling in WWD is something so fantastical that it can't ever change. It has dinosaurs, and is a documentary style production. It's made by BBC. It's Walking With Dinosaurs.

I wonder if you were this vocal about the terrible WWD movie that came out.

Planet Dinosaur fits your definition of Walking with Dinosaurs, but it's not called Walking with Dinosaurs because it's substantially different from Walking with Dinosaurs. If this new series is also substantially different from Walking with Dinosaurs, it's fair to criticise calling it Walking with Dinosaurs.

And here's the Walking with Dinosaurs 3D movie thread, people were pretty vocal aboout that too!  https://dinotoyblog.com/forum/index.php?topic=630

That thread is really funny with the benefit of hindsight. Poor, poor innocent people in the past, unaware of the sheer magnitude of disappointment they would soon face.
...Also I now kinda really want a modern "Chased by dinosaurs/Sea monsters" take. Or even better yet, modern Prehistoric Park.

And if Nigel Marven isn't available, I am.  https://dinotoyblog.com/video/mosasaur-unboxing-nigel-marven-style/

[GojiraGuy1954]

It's understandable that people want a chronological storytelling but I don't personally think it's that big of a deal. Let's not pretend that Prehistoric Planet is perfect in this sense either, and even the original WWD has its issues with storytelling as a whole where it can jump around and be very convoluted, even at times anachronistic with fauna appearances. I grew up watching WWD, and to say that the original CG is better than the current WWD is nothing short of nostalgia. What has held up in WWD is the puppetry. But otherwise it falls short, it reuses the Allosaurus Fragilis model alone for two separate dinosaur species. I'm not knocking it, as I know the budget was not astronomical. But the same thing applies here, this show does not have Apples budget.

Anyone going into this with a negative mindset is going to get what they put in, disappointment. Me personally, I'm glad to see dinosaur/prehistoric media that actually cares about the science and isn't Jurassic World.

Prehistoric Planet never said it was going to be Walking With Dinosaurs

You act like the storytelling in WWD is something so fantastical that it can't ever change. It has dinosaurs, and is a documentary style production. It's made by BBC. It's Walking With Dinosaurs.

I wonder if you were this vocal about the terrible WWD movie that came out.

I was seven when that released so no